This invention relates to control valves of the type comprising a rotatable distributing member which is provided with a plurality of ribs that are disposed in engagement with a cooperating surface of the body of the valve so as to form therewith a plurality of channels to permit selective interconnection of inlet and outlet ports of said valve upon rotation of the distributing member.
Control valves of this type are useful for the vacuum control of fluid circuits, for instance, the vacuum being taken, from the intake manifold of a vehicle engine, to control small vacuum cylinders operating various ventilating and heating apparatuses in the vehicle. Rotation of the distributing member is controlled by means of a lever actuating an axle which is journaled in the valve body. The distributing member is applied by a spring against the cooperating surface of this body. Indexing means have to be provided for holding the distributing member in any one of its useful positions, i.e., the positions ensuring the control of the various cylinders.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,856,045 describes a control valve of the above-mentioned type, in which the spring is clamped between two parts that rotate in unison, which renders manufacturing and assembling of the control valve more complicated, and the axle is a member separate from the distributing member, which is engaged in central apertures through the valve body and the distributing member, and which is provided at one end with a flange which is pressed against the outer face of the body, the spring being clamped between the distributing member and a washer which is fixed at the other free end of the axle member. The indexing means comprise cooperating detent teeth provided in the flange integral with the axle member and in the valve body respectively.
One of the objects of the present invention is to reduce the number of component parts of a control valve of the above-metioned type.
Another object is to provide a control valve of the above-mentioned type having a spring that works between a valve body and a distributing member.
Another object is to provide a control valve of the above-mentioned type, including a spring which is useful to apply a distributing member against the cooperating surface of a valve body, and besides to hold the distributing member in any one of its useful positions.
A further object is to provide a control valve of the above-mentioned type, including a spring which can close and open an electrical circuit.